I dont know a thing about the fields in Pittsgrove, they could be perfectly maintained for all I care. It does not change the fact that the vast majority of teams are not located anywhere near there and the location choice is dumb. Mercer county park and Bordentown are on my top 5 worst fields ever played on list. NJYS FAILURES AGAIN.

Haven't been to any of those fields since my 22 yr old daughter was playing U12. What in the world in NJYS thinking?? Chewed up crappy fields to play the most important tournament of the year. Clowns...

There is no fixing it. All old school know it alls that will not change. Be happy you are U17 and leaving this mess. If you want to have all neutral fields at least pick a location or locations in the middle of the state. Personally I dont see a need for neutral sites but if you are going to do it, do it right. Next year the neutral site will be in Ramsey to make up for it? They really made all of the arrangements and said guys we did a great job here? They should all be fired.

Us Club is the way of the future for American Soccer...Old school way of thinking and decision making is never going to get us nowhere.odp is a waste of money.. Njys is outdated and out of touch..outdated card system, outdated way of doing things. Njys is basically catering to town Rec programs..

People wonder why we cant qualify for the Olympics in soccer. Deal with the ODP dinosaurs and you will see why. The problem with these organizations is that the kids move thru and are gone. Very few parents stay around when their kids age out. So the people running these organizations don't really care what you say - cause they know you will be gone too.

To make it even better the lower level State Cup begins tomorrow on the same fields. Forecast is for rain or even 1-3 inches of snow. They will play at least some if not all of the games and the fields will be 100% unplayable for the following weeks games. Whoever thought this was a good idea = terminated.

Everyone at NJYS should be fired. Field locations are atrocious. It is money thing? Are people getting paid off perhaps to bring the games to their fields? The decision making is so bad there must be something shady going on. That's the only way to even remotely try to understand it. Does anyone think there is a chance they ever look at this blog? Thoughts?

Can someone ask NJYS the reasoning for playing in South south Jersey for the NJ state cup? I would believe they have a transparent organization? Where is the 2022 WC in Qatar. That makes sense in 120 degree heat..???

No one ever gives any credit to TSF. This is a team that has built each year and has gotten to the point where they can be mentioned as a contender for any tournament or SC they play in. Coaching staff has done a good job. Players have gelled and will be enjoying a great season.

TSF and NJCSA Marlboro both advanced last night. TSF will have to deal with STA while NJCSA Marlboro will get Bergenfield Elite. I am not familiar with Bergenfield Elite, are they a new team with players from all over or did they apply to the wrong group?

first half of CSA-Marlton game was very good. 1-1, tight, back and forth battle. CSA coach made changes at halftime and Marlton amped up attack. 4-1 very quickly and game became almost a laugher (score could have been like 6-2 but both goalies made great plays at times). Marlton is a very fast/physical team with like 10-12 almost interchangeable players who are all clean touch/solid and 1-2 standouts. They move the ball quickly and with a purpose. No wasted movement. CSA has what could be a strong middle, but several of the players dribble all over the place without much purpose and the attack almost never materializes. CSA seems to be talented but not very cohesive team yet. Not enough size and speed for the most part on defense to hold off a team like Marlboro. Especially when the midfielders are stalled in the middle of the field for much of game and eventually lose ball--which puts their defense under great pressure often.

Cedar Stars had no real track record against the better teams, they were exposed as the level team they are. Yes, it is just one game but now they will need to earn a rep and not be handed one because of their name. If "real" soccer gets you pounded 4-1 then keep on keeping on with it.

Marlon played very well. But didn't seem to need to play out of their mind. CSA kind of self destructed due to lack of defensive organization and really no threat up top. The midfield like someone said is talented but does not have a concept yet. Or at least one that can work against a smart, sound team who can limit attacking options and can out physical over dribblers. CSA defense has no size and very little speed. Maybe two true defenders and then several other midfield winger types who they stick back there.

CSA are very fast but they do not pass. All of the players look to play out by themselves and not as a team. It looked like it was 11 individual players on a field. They have a ton of potential. If they played as a team they could be very good.

NJX played FC Europa the day before state cup in Region 1 league...tough game the day before State cup when no other teams played Saturday. Poorly scheduled. Not an excuse for them but that could have played a part....how large or small I can't say. Tough weekend.

NJX is a vary capable and solid team, they can beat anyone on any given day. In any match there will be a winner and a loser, were they dominated? Was it a blowout? No, it was a very close match and one team moved on. The bigger question is how did Ocean only lose 1-0 to the mighty Match Fit?

If you really think he is an all American caliber player then you know nothing. Very slow, can't go to his left. Sorry that isn't someone that is an all American. Not sure how that bogus award happened. Maybe it was all the pk's he took after his teammates did the work

In other news, the NJ Cup 1/4 finals begin this week. The matchups are:

SSC vs HolmdelSTA vs TSFMarlton vs SJEBBergenfield vs Marlboro

SSC vs Holmdel, I wouldnt be surprised to see either come out with a win, both have speed up top and finishers to boot. Holmdel wins in PK's.

STA vs TSF, STA is the favorite but TSF will put up a good fight. STA will hold on for a 2-1 victory.

Marlton vs SJEB, a match between two teams that know each other well. There will be no surprises in this one, but SJEB defensive liabilities will hurt them again. Marlton 4-1

Bergenfield vs Marlboro, I guess Bergenfield could surprise us and maybe they added a lot of new players. Who knows? Who ever heard of them or saw them play before? I would think most are rooting for you though. Marlboro 3-0

12:03, good point. Take a look at who they played. Do you really think they are THAT much better then everyone else when they beat mid level teams. Not sure that there is an argument that they are the two best teams but the margin is not great at all. Hell Ocean almost beat MF.

Since Disney MF has beaten or tied 9 of the top 16 teams in the counrty. I know that the rankings can be a bit bogus at times. That doesn't change the level of competition they've played. Won one of the top flights in Disney, finalist at Jeff Cup, top seed at regional playoffs and in the semis of the NJ SC. Have they won every game, no. They win the important ones. No team can possibly get up for every opponent. Do you think Ocean gets pumped up to play the DOL Eagles? Probably not. I can assure you they got up to play us and for the most part played harder than us. It's only natural. How pumped up do you think sdfc was to play NJ force? Not very! Backs to the wall they turned it on and got the win. It's my guess no other u17 team has had the success MF has had this season. Other than very few, no one will have the chance to go to regionals or nationals. Thats the goal for this team, plain and simple.

MF easily forgets the fact that they are not in the academy league anymore. The academy league is more competitive than EDP. They weren't top in academy but now they can brag they're top in EDP. #1 in the state and 1 of the best teams in the country because got soccer says so!

Matchfit is a better team than most, can lose on a given day yes. sdfc is not much better than top 5 in New Jersey, Marlton beat them 2-0, Marlboro played them 4-3, really not much better than top teams in state.. Last year lost to Marlton in semifinals of state cup!

The two times that SDFC has faced NJ Force both games went to over time. Now I'm not saying NJ Force is better team because they are not, but they are team that goes out and tries to compete. They do a pretty good job of it.

If you call tryouts "recruiting" then you are correct. You probably should have come. Give me one example of a kid that was playing for a competitor and is now playing at MF. Nobody has come from the teams that are considered top 10 right now. None. more kids have left MF and are playing with other teams in top 10. Wish them the best. I'd say there are 5 kids on the team that were playing on mid level teams that came for a tryout.

Actually many, you are an elitist and feel anyone NOT on your team is a mid level team. Certainly wont name them but you know the truth. When you say I made my choice you are supporting my claim, thanks.

The zero goals scored of course would be a problem, cant win if you dont score. A little surprising, SJB have been giving up goals and Marlton is known to be able to score. These are two teams that know each other well, might even have HS teammates on opposing teams.

Congratulations to Cape Express for winning but it shouldnt be called a State Cup Championship. I know it is a different level but the state shouldnt even allow it to be called that. No one is saying the kids didnt work hard, but to be a state champion you should have to play the top teams. Two levels of play is a joke at U17.

What did the SSC coach do this time, trip someone as they were running by? He is such an ass and yells at opposing players all the time. Does the coach have the same penalty as a player, cant play/coach in the next game?

Our coach shook everyone's hand before and after the game (opposing coach and team) except the guy that was red carded because he was in the parking lot after being tossed. Who gets thrown out of a U17 boys game? Those dads are out of control. They shouldn't really be on the sideline and if I was a parent of an SSC player I would demand that they were not or I would take my kid somewhere else to play. One thing is to win and another thing is to win with class.

The SSC coach was thrown out for arguing with the ref. Something he does on the regular, but this ref had the guts to toss him. As for Holmdel being better than Force, maybe. Force did beat them 3-1 in NYC Cup last year. Force won the second division last year and that is why they moved up, so like it or not they earned it.

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